Lobbying for post of Jharkhand CM begins

With BJP pondering over the JMM's offer to hand over the reins of a new Jharkhand government to its candidate, lobbying for the coveted post has already begun.

According to BJP insiders, ex-cm and party's national general secretary Arjun Munda and Deputy Chief Minister Raghuvar Das have 'stepped up lobbying'.

The BJP Parliamentary Board this morning decided to put on hold its decision to withdraw support to the Shibu Soren government after receiving a letter from JMM leader Hemant Soren expressing willingness to support a government led by BJP.

Munda, a two-time Chief Minister, has an edge over Das as Hemant Soren last night made it is clear that the party would prefer a tribal chief minister. Das is a non-tribal.
   
Though Jharkhand is set to witness its eighth government in over nine years, no non-tribal has ever become a chief minister.
   
In Jharkhand politics the trend has been that if the Chief Minister is chosen from the leading party, supporting parties will be given the option to choose a deputy Chief Minister.
    
Stephen Marandi (IND) and Sudhir Mahato (JMM) had been the deputies of ex-CM Madhu Koda and Raghuvar Das (BJP) and Sudesh Mahto (Ajsu party) are the deputies to JMM president and Chief Minister Shibu Soren.